Instructional leadership and methods principals use to exhibit and harness that leadership to meet their school goals. In particular,the focus on the following goals:
• Building and sustaining a school vision
• Sharing leadership
• Leading a learning community
• Using data to make instructional decisions
• Monitoring curriculum and instruction

Evaluating teachers is addressed in more depth in Chapter 4. Existing research related to the role of the principal and monitoring curriculum and instruction indicates the following:

• Effective principals possess knowledge of the curriculum and good instructional practices (Cotton, 2003) and, subsequently, focus their attention in their schools on curriculum and instruction (Mazzeo, 2003).
• Effective principals monitor the implementation of curriculum standards and make sure they are taught (Schmoker, 2006).
• Effective principals model behaviors that they expect of school staff (Marzano et al., 2005).
• Principals are in a good position to support teacher effectiveness through observations and conversations with teachers (Cooper et al., 2005).
• Principals need to spend time in classrooms in order to effectively monitor and encourage curriculum implementation and quality instructional practices (Fink & Resnick, 2001; Pajak & McAfee, 1992; Ruebling et al., 2004).
• Teachers and principals feel it is important to have someone to steer the curriculum and prioritize staff development (Portin et al., 2003).
• Teachers too frequently view classroom observations as a means to satisfy contractual obligations rather than as a vehicle for improvement and professional growth (Cooper et al., 2005).
• In effective schools, principals are able to judge the quality of teaching and share a deep knowledge of instruction with teachers (Fink & Resnick, 2001).
• An effective leader promotes coherence in the instructional program where teachers and students follow a common curriculum framework (Leithwood & Riehl, 2003).
• Effective principals trust teachers to implement instruction effectively, but they also monitor instruction with frequent classroom visits to verify the results (Portin et al., 2003).

A Final Word on the Power of Positive Instructional Leadership

Nothing in the principal's role is more important for ensuring successful student learning than effective instructional leadership. School principals who focus on a vision for their schools nurture the leadership capabilities of their teachers. Additionally, if their schools are moving in the right direction, they model effective leading and learning. Combining these efforts with using data appropriately, as well as monitoring what takes place at the classroom level, will increase the likelihood that schools will achieve their goals for student learning.